Meet the Newest Members of Pittsburgh Moms Blog!

We are thrilled to introduce you to our newest Pittsburgh Moms Blog team members! You’ll get to know them more over the next weeks as they share their first posts with you. Here’s a little insight into the newest Pittsburgh moms who are joining our team!

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Frances

Frances is a wife, mother of middle school age boys, and a community volunteer. She works as a clinical laboratory scientist by day and moonlights as a blogger. She spends her free time decorating her home, reading or listening to a good book, finding new things to try, attempting to organize, and making lists to help keep everything on track. While she has a good life, there is always room for improvement. 

Frances is a recent transplant to Pittsburgh currently residing in the South Hills. Although it’s been a journey to get here…since getting married she has lived in five houses and four states…Frances is glad to be back in the mountains and near her home state of West Virginia. Since they are newcomers here, her family loves to be local tourist checking out all the cool things that Pittsburgh and the surrounding area has to offer.

Heather

Heather Holtschlag is a Pittsburgh-based freelance writer and public relations specialist. She is the wife of an incredibly smart and talented business owner and the mother of two boys who light up her days with their vivacious personalities and ear-to-ear smiles.

After nearly 15 years as a fulltime healthcare public relations specialist (and the birth of her sons), Heather launched Healthy Fit PR, a business dedicated to meeting the promotional needs of health and wellness clients. Through Healthy Fit PR, Heather works with clients to develop strategic public relations plans that incorporates a variety of communications tools, including website content, newsletters, media relations campaigns and social media marketing.

An avid exercise enthusiast, Heather often practices what her clients preach and can be found at the gym most mornings, either running, taking an exercise class or strength training.

You can read more about Heather and view writing samples at www.HealthyFitPR.com.

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Hillary

Hillary is a new first time mom to a baby girl, Ava.  She was born and raised in the Pittsburgh area, and still lives north of the city with her husband, daughter, and two totally out of control dogs.  She attended Cal U and studied Journalism, but shortly after graduating discovered a passion for kiddos with special needs and attended Florida Tech for a graduate certificate in Applied Behavior Analysis.  
 
Hillary enjoys impulse shopping for things she doesn’t need, cooking, crafting, writing, spending time with family, and traveling to places warmer than Pittsburgh.

Jesse

Originally from outside Philadelphia, Jesse Hartwich moved to Pittsburgh three years ago and now lives in the South Hills. She is married to her adorably nerdy husband whom she met in junior high and together they have a one-year-old daughter, Riley, and a second baby on the way in June 2017. A writer by schooling and profession, Jesse graduated from Susquehanna University and has worked as a copywriter/editor for several major retailers. She now stays home with her daughter but continues to write for herself, both fiction and her own blog (www.WanderlustRunning.com).

In addition to writing, Jesse is an avid runner and will race anything from the mile to the marathon. She loves to travel, read, be outside, and enjoy a good latte. As a newbie mom, Jesse is just beginning her parenting journey and is excited for all the adventures to come with her growing family.

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Julia

Julia is a lifelong writer and lover of good wine and carbs. She lives in the South Hills with her family: a husband, two boys aged four months and 14, and two cats. She freelances in marketing, communications, and writing and is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. Julia has an MBA from Point Park University and a Bachelor’s degree from Pitt.

She enjoys hanging out with her family, traveling to new places, Wheel of Fortune, and sleep. If she had a superpower, it would be to fly: traffic jams would be a thing of the past.

Katie

Katie is a wife and mom of two boys, Lucas and Toby. She is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, with a degree in Marketing & Communications. Their second son, Toby, was born in May of 2016 and died suddenly in August from SIDS, at 12 weeks and 5 days old. Through this loss, they have founded The Little Fox | Toby’s Foundation with the hopes of bringing joy, laughter, and lots of smiles to families within the Pittsburgh community, while working to spread awareness about child-loss and the lives of grieving parents. 

Katie is currently the Director of Marketing for A. Martini & Co., and General Contracting and Construction Management Firm. She has been heavily involved with juvenile diabetes research, because she was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 2. Currently, Katie sits on the Executive Leadership Council for the American Diabetes Association, Pittsburgh Chapter and is part of the planning committee for Step Out: Pittsburgh each year. While in the throes of motherhood, Katie is also active throughout the week with exercise routines, Paw Patrol and PJ Masks episodes, blogging at Our Happy Place & Co., a lifestyle blog she started in 2013, and working with her husband on the mission of The Little Fox.

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Lanae

Lanae is lifelong Pittsburgh resident with a brief stint in Ohio for her high school and middle school years.  Most of her life she lived in Wilkinsburg but recently became a resident of the north boroughs.  Lanae holds an associates’ degree in fashion merchandising and a bachelor’s degree in business management.  After college, Lanae, entered the insurance and financial services industry by becoming a licensed agent and a claims specialist. Lanae also is an advocate for cloth diapering and baby wearing.  Through her website drybabies.org she offers information and sources offering cloth diapering to all women and families in need.  

With two boys and 3 girls ranging in ages from 18- 2 most of her time is spent traveling to ballet lessons, band practice, and cello lessons.  Also, two of her children are special needs and require various appointments and therapy.  When there is time left, she enjoys writing, sewing and cooking.  She is currently finishing up her first novel with more already in the works. With a love for travel, Lanae and her family have been to 5 different Caribbean islands and 2 countries in South America.  So, look to hear more about the organized chaos that is traveling with 5 kids.

Lauren 

Lauren grew up in Pittsburgh and spent 15 years exploring the rest of the country before recently returning. She and her wife live in Bellevue with their son and geriatric dog. Lauren has a colorful employment history and has worked as: an academic advisor for engineering students, a traveling jewelry salesperson, a Gymboree teacher, an Air Force officer, a tree climber, and a line worker at a car wash, to name a few. She enjoys fumbling through her current gig as a full time mom and part-time writer/editor for Civitas, a small community development consulting firm.
 
Since moving back, Lauren has enjoyed rediscovering everything that Pittsburgh has to offer. Her favorite spots in the city are currently: Phipps Conservatory, Frick Park, Bayne Park, and any indoor play place that isn’t completely overrun on a cold winter day. Lauren thinks and writes a lot about queer parenting and getting kids outside. 
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Lindsey

Lindsey was born and raised in Pittsburgh. She met her husband, Andrew, on her 16th birthday.  A graduate of Elon University, she currently works part time as a tax consultant.  She loves traveling and spent a year living in Costa Rica with her husband. They currently reside in Hampton Township with their two boys Jackson (June 2014) and Owen (June 2016), and love taking their boys on traveling adventures.
 
Besides traveling, Lindsey enjoys starting her mornings with a Starbucks chai tea latte, yoga, boxing, getting a massage when she can, margaritas, and having dance parties to Katy Perry with her boys.  You can follow along with Lindsey’s family adventures on Instagram at @llynch41.

Marissa

I’m Marissa, a 33 year young dreamer. I get to be married to Jesse Sherrill and together, we get to parent Zoey, Madeleine and Eleanor Alice. I’m dog mom to Tessa. So many spirited females under one roof! 
 
I wear athletic socks in every shoe. I believe adventure is a wonderful thing. I enjoy real talk and truth telling.
 
I’m originally from Erie, Pennsylvania, but relocated many times throughout childhood and eventually ended up in Pittsburgh as an adult to pursue nursing. I’m a proud graduate of Shadyside School of Nursing. While I love my profession and enjoyed a few years working in an acute care setting, I’ve shifted my focus over the years to adjust to our growing family. I continue to work outside of the home part time in a private duty position, providing nursing care for clients in their homes. Now I am committed to impacting health care by helping change the nutritional habits of one person at a time and sharing a healthy active lifestyle as a personal wellness coach.
 
I reside in Jeannette with my family and I am passionate about being a good neighbor and making an impact in my community. I love to dance, run, sing, practice yoga, read and pray. I’m so grateful to be here and share  life together here with you. 
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Mary

Mary Yohannan lives in the Baldwin-Whitehall area of Pittsburgh.  She moved to Pittsburgh over 2 years ago with her husband and 2 beautiful children.  Mary owns her own travel agency Life is Better Traveling™, LLC which has helped hundreds of families take amazing vacations to Disney®, the Caribbean, Hawaii, Alaska, and all over Europe.  She is also the founder of the Travel Agent School Supporting Learning and Education™ or T.A.S.S.L.E, which has the How to Become a SUCCESSFUL Travel Agent program™, a one-stop, all-inclusive program for someone who wants to become a Successful Travel Agent.  Mary earned the distinguished honor of the Certified Travel Associate (CTA) through the Travel Institute in 2016, and has several other travel and tourism certifications.

Mary has traveled to over 20 countries on 3 continents, but it wasn’t until she had children did she learn that traveling with little ones is a completely different, and sometimes challenging, traveling experience.  Mary’s authentic passion for travel and traveling with her children has given her extensive knowledge on the best tips, tricks, and hacks to keep kids calm, entertained, and well-behaved while traveling.  She posts a variety of travel tips and tricks on her highly coveted, High Content Life is Better Traveling website, but she has a lot of great advice on traveling with kids that she can’t wait to share with all those amazing Pittsburgh Moms. 

Raeanne

Raeanne is happiest elbow-deep in garden dirt and surrounded by the smells of summer. She is married to a tree climbing carpenter and is the mama to a sweet baby girl she calls “lady bird” and a furry baby named Bisou. She lives in a little A-frame in the middle of the woods just outside of the city. 
 
Born and raised in Pittsburgh, Raeanne did a six year stint in Northern Virginia before packing up and heading home – her family is her greatest treasure. 
 
Raeanne has a deep urging to slow down and to live a simpler life. A creative at heart, you’ll often find Raeanne creating, exploring, experiencing and sharing. Her yearning for more creativity is what led her to start her blog The Name is Rae and how she ended up here. 
 
As a lover of Pittsburgh and a new mom, Raeanne is looking forward to opening her heart to the Pittsburgh Mom community!
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Ryan

Ryan is a native of Pittsburgh. She was born and raised, and still lives in Beechview with her husband, Casey, their soon-to-be 5 year old son, Gabriel and their two dogs, Nigel and Dexter. 
 

She’s a proud graduate of the Pittsburgh Public School System and later received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Pittsburgh. Her early career years were spent in the non-profit sector as a post-secondary counselor for at risk youth. She later transitioned to working closely with grants management and technical assistance training. For the last 10 years she’s worked as a Technical Communication Specialist focusing on interface instruction, user experience, and user guidance for several software products.

 
When she’s not fulfilling the responsibilities of her day job, Ryan can be found listening to and obsessing over David Bowie – and passing that obsession on to her son. She enjoys buying craft supplies with the best of intentions that never actually become a craft, unless you consider piles of craft supplies a craft. She’s recently started knitting again after a six year hiatus which is a source of relaxation and frustration – somehow at the same time. 
 
Ryan enjoys reading, picking through thrift stores and flea markets, movies, music, and exploring all of the great places Pittsburgh has to offer families.

Sarah

Sarah Knight is a mother of five children, wife of her college sweetheart and companion to her numerous household pets, as well as a resident of the South Hills of Pittsburgh.  She holds two degrees from Duquesne University: A Master’s in English Literature and BS in Business Management.
 
Growing up as an only child, Sarah has faced many challenges raising a large family. Raising children (the youngest being highly energetic twin 4 year olds) has provided many lessons in parenting, patience and life. She is an aspiring writer who is now finally able to put pen to paper, as her kiddos are a little bit older. As a stay at home mom, living on a single income, Sarah is always finding new ways to keep the family on a budget.
 
She is an avid runner, and has ran five half marathons and will be running the Pittsburgh half this May.  She loves learning new things, whether experimenting with cooking, making home decor or gardening.
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Stephanie

Stephanie is married to a boy she met in 5th grade and the mother of two awesome kids, Evi and Eli. She is a graduate of Duquesne University, with a degree in Communications and Psychology and a master’s degree in Counseling Education. Stephanie is an elementary school counselor, so essentially, is surrounded by children for most of her day.

She loves warm weather, going on adventures with her family, walking on trails, and having a “free day” with no plans! Stephanie loves to write and still enjoys a pretty notebook and a favorite pen rather than a computer. 

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Meghan Meabon
Meghan is the Founder and Co-Owner of Pittsburgh Mom Collective. Born and raised in Pittsburgh also known as “The City of Neighborhoods.” She studied Education at Edinboro University where she also obtained her Masters in Educational Leadership. She's been married to her best friend and husband, Jeromie, for 18 years. Together they have been blessed with three beautiful children, son, Dylan 15 years old, daughter, Madison 13 years old and son, Jordan 9 years old. She enjoys watching the creative minds of her children as they participate in their extra activities. Favorite pastimes are cheering on the Pittsburgh Sports, relaxing on the beach and laughing with friends and family over a glass of red. Meghan is excited about meeting Pittsburgh Moms and connecting them to resources that will make their lives easier and more fun!